Recoiling toy cannon



1941- J. c. SHERRICK 2,252,308

RECOILING TOY CANNON Filed April 13, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l Aug. 12; 1941.

J. C. SHERRICK RECOILING TOY CANNON Filed April 15, 1939' 2 Sheets-Sheet2 aw WM Patented Aug. 12, 1941 1 j UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE\RECOILING TOY CANNON Jess C. Sherrick, Canton, Ohio ApplicationApril13, 1939, Serial No. 267,700

' 9 Claims. (o1.124 2'9) This invention relates to toys 'andisparticularly directed to atoy representing and operatin in a mannersimilar to a cannon or otherarticle of field artillery.

The primary object of'the invention resides in the provision of a toycannon which will discharge powder caps and, at the time of suchdischarge, recoil in a manner similar to an actual cannon which-the toyrepresents.

Another object rests in the provision of a toy cannon with recoilmechanism which will be operated simultaneously with or immediatelyfollowing the discharge of the cannon.

A further object is the provision of connecting means between the firingmechanism or hammer whereby the recoil producing means will be placed incondition for operation upon movement of the hammer to a cookedposition.

It is also an object to provide a toy with a body portion shaped tosimulate a cannon and having supporting Wheels which are connected withthe body portion by means of a crank-shaped axle shaft, the body beingcarried by the offset portion of the shaft 50 that rotary movement ofthe wheels will cause the body to raise and lower. When the body iselevated, its weight resting on the offset portion of the axle shaftwill, by the force of gravity, cause the shaft to rotate and impartsimilar movement to the wheels. By providing controlled means to engageand rotate the shaft in one direction at the proper time, the toy may bemade to move rearwardly a limited distance when the cannon is dischargedand at the completion of the rearward movement, the body will be in anelevated position.

The means for rotating the axle shaft is so operated as to be disengagedfrom the shaft when the body reaches the end of its recoiling movementand the weight of the-body will cause the axle to rotate and move thetoy forward to its original position.

A further understanding will be had from the following description andthe accompanying drawings in which 'theinvention has been illustrated inits preferred form.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a toy cannon formed in accordance withthe present invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view taken through thecannon illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a similar View showing the cannon in a cocked position readyfor action;

A Fig. 4 isa iragmentarysectional viewillustrating the operativemechanism of the cannon.

- out of engagement with the hammer.

immediately prior to the completion of its movement in the firing andrecoiling operation;

Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken on the planeindicated by the line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a similar view on the plane indicated by the line 6-6 of Fig.2;

Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view taken on the plane indicated by theline 8--8 of Fig. 2.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the numeral [designates thebody of the toy formed of sheet metal and shaped to simulate a cannon.or other article of field artillery. The upper portion of the body isprovided with an elongated barrel 2 formed of tubing or the like andhaving open ends. The rear end is formed with an upwardly extending lip3 to stop an imitation projectile 4 in position to be engaged by apivoted hammer 5.

Immediately below the rear end of the barrel, the body is provided witha plate 6 having its side edges formed with grooves I for the receptionof toy powder caps which the cannon is adapted to discharge. The plate 6is formed with an open-- ing 8 through which smoke from the burningpowder passes when the caps are discharged. This smoke, after passingthrough the opening 8, moves upwardly through an opening 9 in the barrel2 after which it may move longitudinally of the barrel and passoutwardly through the forward end of the barrel to make the toy seemmore natural.

The hammer 5 has a projection H) which registers with the plate 6 whenthe hammer moves to a discharge position. The hammer is mounted on atransversely extending pin II and its rear surface is provided with anotch to engage a pivoted trip member 12 mounted with the body member atthe rear of the hammer; Thelower end of the hammer is formed with anopening to receive the looped end of a spring l3, the opposite end ofthis member being disposed in engagement wth the trip to yieldably holdit against a stop l4 formed on the inner side of the body. The extremeupper end of the hammer terminates above the barrel and is formed forengagement by the finger of the operator of the cannon in the operationof moving the hammer to a cooked position.

By engaging the hammer in moving it rearwardly on its pivot, the notchon the back of the hammer will be moved into engagement with the tripagainst the action of the spring l3. It will be held in this positionuntil the trip I2 is moved The release of the hammer is accomplished byformin the trip member with an arm 15 arranged exteriorly of the body.

A flexible cable I6 is connected with the upper end of the arm I toenable the cannon to be fired from a remote location. When the hammer isreleased, the spring 13 will cause it to move into forcible engagementwith the plate 6 and if a cap is positioned on the plate, it will bedischarged by the blow. ,At the same time, a projection I! formed on thehammer above that engaging the plate 6 will enter the rear end of thebarrel and strike the projectile 4, causing it to move through thebarrel and be discharged from the outer end.

The body I has an axle shaft 18 journaled in its lower portion toreceive ground engaging wheels I!) rigidly connected to the ends of theshaft. The intermediate portion of the shaft is bent as at 2!! toprovide a pair of offset crank portions which receive and support thebody. When the weight of the body is positioned directly on the offsetportions of the axle shaft, the toy will assume the position shown inFig. 2 with the offset portions of the shaft in the lowermost position.The center of the axle shaft is disposed substantially in registrationwith the outer ends and the axle may be rotated in its bearings byimparting movement to the central portion thereof. Stop means 2| areprovided adjacent the offset portions of the axle shaft to limit thedegree of rotation of this member.

To impart rotation thereto, the body portion is provided with a floatingwheel rotating member 22 which is formed of sheet metal and is U-shapedin cross section and is connected at its rear end by a link 23 with thepivot for the hammer. The outer end of the member 22 is curved as at 24and is provided with a shoulder 25 at the rear of the curved portion.This shoulder constitutes a hook which, when the member 22 is moved asufficient distance forwardly, will engage the central portion of theaxle shaft. By drawing the lever 22 toward the rear, rotary movementwill be imparted to the axle. When the latter member has approximatelyreached the rear stop 2|, the forward end of the member 22 will engage atransversely extending pin 26 and further movement of the member 22 willcause the shoulder 25 to move out of engagement with the axle. At thistime, the body will be elevated with respect to the centers of the wheeland the release of the axle will permit the weight of the body to causethe axle to rotate in the opposite. direction until the crank portionsare at their lowermost. positions as indicated in Fig. 2.

A coil spring 21 extends between the rear end of the hook carryingmember 22 and a, transversely extending rivet 28 and furnishes the powerto draw the member 22 rearwardly after it has engaged the axle. Themember 22 is moved forwardly through the engagement of the lower end ofthe hammer with the link 23 when the hammer is moved to acookedposition. The rear end of the body I is held in spaced relationfrom the ground by providing a roller 29 on one arm of a bell crank 30pivoted as at 3| to the body. The second arm of the bell crankleverprojects through an opening in the body and may be manually moved toraise or lower the roller 29 and change the angularity of the barrelwith respect to the ground surface.

The operation, of the device is as follows:

The hammer 5.,is moved rearwardly by a manaesasoe ual operation untilthe notch on the rear thereof engages the trip member l2. The cap isthen positioned in the slots 1 of the plate 6 and the cannon is ready tobe fired. The operation of moving the hammer rearwardly causes the lowerend to engage the link 23 and move the wheel rotating member forwardlyagainst the action of the spring 21 where it will be held until thehammer is released. The parts are shown in this position in Fig. 3. Thehook 25 is in engagement with the central portion of the axle.

When the arm I5 is moved toward the rear, the hammer will be releasedand permitted to move to the firing position. As the lower end ofthehammer moves away from the link, the spring 21 will draw the member22 toward the rear and the wheels will be rotated to cause the entiretoy to move rearwardly and the forward end of the barrel upwardly. Whenthe mechanism reaches the position shown in Fig. 4, the shoulder 25 willbe freed from engagement with the axle and the weight of the toy byreasonof gravity will cause the Wheels to rotate to move the toyforwardly to the position shown in Fig. Zat which time, the device willbe in condition for the next operation. From the foregoing, it will beapparent that a toy has been provided which resembles an actual cannonboth in appearance and operation. While but asingle modification hasbeen illustrated and described, it is obvious that many changes may bemade therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, supportingwheels for said body, the latter being mounted eccentrically on saidwheels, hammer means pivotally supported by said body, and springoperated means for partially rotating said wheels, said last-named meansbeing set for operation by movement of said hammer means to a cookedposition.

2. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, crank-shapedaxle means extending transversely of said body, a supporting wheelrigidly, secured to each end of said axle, hammer means pivotallysupported by said body, spring pressed crank operating means, saidlast-named meansbeing placed in condition for operation by the. movementof said hammer to a cocked position, and means for releasing said crankoperating means from engagement with said crank after movement has beenimparted to said wheels.

3. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, supportingwheels for said body, hammer means pivotally supported by said body,means for holding said hammer means in a cocked position, and meansconnected with said supporting wheels and operable upon the release ofsaid hammer holding means to effectrotation of said wheels.

4. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, axlemeansextending transversely of said body, said axle having crank-shaped endand intermediate portions, supporting wheels rigidly secured to theendsof said axle means, floating hook means in registration with thecrankshaped intermediate portion of said axle means, spring means formoving said hook means when the latter is in engagement with said axlemeans, a hammer pivotally supported by said body, trip means formaintaining said hammer in a cocked position, and means for transmittingmovement from said hammer to said hook means to cause the engagement ofthe latter with said axle means when said hammer is moved to a cockedposition, said hook means imparting movement to said axle and wheelsupon the actuation of said trip means to release said hammer.

5. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, an axle shaftextending transversely of said body, the end and intermediate portionsof said shaft being crank-shaped, supporting wheels secured to the endsof said axle shaft, a supporting roller provided at the rear of saidbody, a hammer pivotally supported by said body, spring means for movingsaid hammer to a firing position, a link mounted for swinging movementabout the axis of the pivot for said hammer, hook-shaped wheel rotatingmeans connected at one end to the free end of said link, the oppositeend of said wheel rotating means being supported for sliding movementover the crank-shaped intermediate portion of said axle to cause theengagement of the hook on said wheel rotating means with said axle, saidwheel rotating means being initially operated by movement of the hammerto a cooked position, and spring means for moving said wheel rotatingmeans to its original position upon movement of said hammer to a firingposition, the movement of said wheel rotating means in response to theaction of said spring serving to impart rotary movement to said wheels.

6. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, an axle shaftextending transversely of said body, the end and intermediate portionsof said shaft being crank-shaped, supporting wheels secured to the endsof said axle shaft,

a supporting roller provided at the rear of said body, a hammerpivotally supported by said body, spring means for moving said hammer toa firing position, a link mounted for swinging movement about the axisof the pivot for said hammer, hook-shaped wheel rotating means connectedat one end to the free end of said link, the opposite end of said wheelrotating means being supported for sliding movement over thecrank-shaped intermediate portion of said axle to cause the engagementof the hook on said wheel rotating means with said axle, said wheelrotating means being initially operated by movement of the hammer to acooked position, spring means for moving said wheel rotating means toits original position upon movement of said hammer to a firing position,the movement of said wheel rotating means in response to the action ofsaid spring serving to impart rotary movement to said wheels, and meansfor releasing the hook on said wheel rotating means from engagement withsaid axle shaft immediately prior to the time said wheel rotating meansreachesits normal position.

'7. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, supportingwheels for said body, hammer means pivotally supported by said body,means for holding said hammer means in a cooked position, meansconnected with said supporting wheels and operable upon the release ofsaid hammer holding means to efiect rotation of said wheels, and meansfor limiting the degree of rotative movement of said wheels. A

8. A toy comprising a body shaped to simulate a cannon, supportingwheels for said body, hammer means pivotally supported by said body formovement from a firing position to a cooked position, means for holdingsaid hammer in the latter position, means connected with said hammermeans for forcibly moving the same from a cooked position to a firingposition, wheel rotating means carried by said body, and means foractuating said wheel rotating means upon the release of said hammer froma cocked position, the operation of said actuating means being delayedwith respect to the operation of said hammer.

9. In a toy, a cannon-shaped body, a crankshaped axle carried by saidbody, ground engaging wheels secured to said axle, the rotation of saidwheels serving to raise and lower said body as it moves over asupporting surface, a hammer pivotally supported by said body, a linkcarried by said body for pivotal movement about the axis of movement ofsaid hammer, a hook member connected with said link, said hook memberbeing engageable with said axle at one position of movement of saidlink, spring means for moving said hammer and link, movement of thelatter serving to impart movement to said axle through said hook, andmeans for automatically releasing said hook from said axle at thetermination of the movement of said link in response to the action ofsaid spring means, the weight of said body serving to effect therotation of said wheels upon disengagement of said hook from said axle.

JESS C. SHERRICK.

